UK: Human rights tool aims to hold government to account

UK: Human rights tool aims to hold government to account

A tool that aims to make the UK’s human rights records transparent and the government accountable has been launched.

HumanRightsTracker.com allows civil society organisations, academics, parliamentarians and legal professionals to learn about the UK’s human rights duties under UN treaties and identify where the government is falling short.

The UK government signed up to seven UN human rights treaties which set the standard for human rights across the globe. However, in many cases, it’s failing to meet the obligations to fulfil them.

HumanRightsTracker.com enables users to:

  • find out what the UN has said about a particular human rights issue (such as access to justice and inclusive education) or population group (such as disabled people or children) in the UK
  • access information on the international human rights framework to use in research, legal, policy and advocacy work
  • find out how to engage with international human rights mechanisms
  • understand how the UK’s international human rights obligations link to the UN Sustainable Development Goals

David Isaac, chair of the Equality and Human Rights Commission, said: “As Britain leaves the EU and we face a period of greater legal change, it’s more important than ever that the country is aware of our international commitments on human rights and what is required to fulfil them.

“To improve people’s lives and make Britain a fairer place for us all, we are calling on everyone in the human rights sector to use our human rights tracker to identify what needs to be done to honour these treaties.

“Starting with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which is to be reviewed next year, we will use the tracker to work with others to ensure that that the government meets our international obligations.”

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